WorkbookEdition 6 the national mall

The passage says that Washington, DC is a “square-shaped city,” but it does not suggest that the National Mall itself is “shaped like a square.” Because options I and III are both true,

Name Date

• Reading Comprehension As es me t

Dire tio s: : Read the passage Then answer the questions below.

The National Mal

The United States, like all nations, honors its historical

figures through a variety of monuments But America does it on a

grander scale than do most In Washington, DC, the nation’s

capital, there is a two-mile-long stretch of land devoted almost

entirely to history monuments Any visitor to DC knows how to find

the National Mall The park is located smack dab in the middle of

the square-shaped city

On a recent trip to Washington, I made it a point to see as

many of the monuments as I could I started by walking past the

White House That is not really a monument, of course Instead, it

is the home of the current president It is also, however, located just

off the Mall

See, in addition to monuments, the Mall also contains government buildings These include the

US Capitol building as well as the headquarters of the Supreme Court, the Treasury Department, the Justice Department, and dozens of other government organizations Most of these buildings also contain monuments The Treasury Building, for instance, has a statue of Alexander Hamilton on one side and a statue of Albert Gallatin on the other side I saw these statues as I walked past the White House and entered the Mall

Past the Treasury Building, I made my way to the tall white structure I could see a half mile away: the Washington Monument This monument is, of course, dedicated to George Washington It is also the tallest structure on the Mall and the center of the entire park

From the Washington Monument, I turned left I could see the Capitol Dome, but I decided

instead to look at more monuments I turned the opposite direction and walked to the Jefferson Memorial There, I took a picture of the Thomas Jefferson statute in the center of it Then, I turned back I was headed for the Reflecting Pool that led up to the Lincoln Memorial

I walked past the World War II Memorial and entered the pool area The shallow water made me able to see the reflection of the towering Washington Monument behind me I kept walking to the

rectangular, columned building ahead of me Up long steps, I could see a giant statue of a seated

Abraham Lincoln I made my way up and stared at the giant before me

By then, it was night I glanced down the steps and took in the view of the entire Mall The

Washington Monument had been lit up I waved to it, and it seemed to glow a farewell to me as well

1) According to paragraph 1, the National Mall

I contains monuments

II is shaped like a square

III is a large park

A I only

B II only

C I and III only

D all of the above

2) The information presented in paragraph 4 suggests that

A the National Mall includes functioning government buildings

B the Washington Monument is lit up at night

C the National Mall is only visible in the daylight

D the Washington Monument is visible from a distance

3) The passage suggests that each of the following structures includes at least one statue of a person

on its grounds EXCEPT

A the Lincoln Memorial

B the Washington Monument

C the Jefferson Memorial

D the Treasury Building

4) The narrator’s tour of the National Monument ended at

A the Lincoln Memorial

B the Washington Monument

C the Jefferson Memorial

D the White House

5) The passage answers which of the following questions?

A How long does it take to walk through the National Mall?

B Who designed the National Mall in Washington, DC and why?

C What are some of the things one can see on a visit to the National Mall?

D How many monuments and other structures does the National Mall contain?

6) If you were to visit the National Mall, which monument would you be most interested in seeing? Why?

If you have visited the National Mall before already, which monument was your favorite? Why?

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7) Make some inferences about the narrator of this passage How old do you think he or she is? What

are his or her background or interests? What brought him or her to Washington, DC? How did you reach your conclusions? Explain

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8) Imagine the narrator of this passage was going to visit the town or city where you currently live What

would you show him or her? Based on the passage and your own inferences, what do you think the narrator would be most interested in seeing? Why?

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1) C

Question Type: Global

The first paragraph provides a lot of information about the National Mall It mentions that Washington, DC contains a “stretch of land devoted almost entirely to monuments” before introducing (in the next sentence) the “National Mall.” This makes it clear that the National Mall “contains monuments,” supporting option (I) The first paragraph also later refers to the National Mall as “the park” and states that it is on a “two-mile-long stretch of land.” This makes it clear the National Mall “is a large park,” supporting option (III) Option (II), however, is not supported The passage says that Washington, DC is a “square-shaped city,” but it does not suggest that

the National Mall itself is “shaped like a square.” Because options (I) and (III) are both true, choice (C) is correct Choices (A) is not correct because more than one option is true Choices (B) and (D) are not correct because the passage does not support option (II)

2) D

Question Type: Inference

In paragraph 4, the narrator states that the Washington Monument was seen by him or “a half mile away.” He or she also states that the structure is “the tallest structure on the Mall and the center of the entire park.” This suggests that “the Washington Monument is

visible from a distance,” as the narrator could see it from a half mile away It makes choice (D) correct as a result The narrator does

state that “the National Mall includes functioning government buildings.” However, he or she does so in paragraph 3 This question

asks about paragraph 4, so choice (A) is not correct The narrator ends the passage by stating that “the Washington Monument had been lit up” at night This question asks about paragraph 4, though, so choice (B) is not correct The narrator does describe how the

Mall appeared in the daylight in paragraph 4 But he or she does not suggest that the Mall is only visible in the daylight

Choice (C) is not correct because it distorts the information presented in the passage

3) B

Question Type: Inference

The Washington Monument is mentioned in paragraph 4 and paragraph 7 There is no reference to it containing a statue of any people Instead, the monument is only described as “the tallest building” and as a “tall white structure.” This question asks for the

structure that does NOT necessarily contain a statue, so choice (B) is correct The Lincoln Memorial is mentioned in paragraph 6,

after being introduced in paragraph 5 In paragraph 6, the narrator states that the memorial contains a “giant statue of a seated Abraham Lincoln.” This means the Lincoln Memorial does contain a statue of a person The question asks for the structure that does

not contain a statue, so choice (A) is not correct In paragraph 5, the narrator mentions the Jefferson Memorial There, the narrator

states that he or she “took a picture of the Thomas Jefferson statue in the center of it.” This means the Jefferson Memorial does

contain a statue of a person The question asks for the structure that does not contain a statue, so choice (C) is not correct The

Treasury Building is mentioned in paragraph 3 There, the narrator states that the building “has a statue of Alexander Hamilton on one side and a statue of Albert Gallatin on the other side.” This means the structure’s grounds contains statues of people The

question asks for the structure that does not contain a statue, so choice (D) is not correct

4) A

Question Type: Detail

To answer this detail question, look for the end of the passage and find out where the narrator is In paragraph 7, he or she is glancing “down the steps” and looking at the entire Mall He or she describes walking up the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in

paragraph 6, so it is clear he or she ended the tour of the National Mall at the Lincoln Memorial This means choice (A) is correct

Though the narrator is looking at the Washington Monument at the end of the passage, he or she is not actually at the monument at

the end of the passage Instead, he or she is on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial This means choice (B) is not correct The

narrator describes visiting the Jefferson Memorial in paragraph 5, and the rest of the passage makes clear he or she continues

walking around the Mall beyond that Because of this, choice (C) is not correct In paragraph 2, the narrator states that he or she

started his or her tour of the National Monument at the White House This question asks about his or her end point, though

Because of this, choice (D) is not correct

5) C

Question Type: Global

Of the questions listed, the only one that the passage answers is the one presented in choice (C) The passage describes many of the sites one can see on a visit to the National Mall, including the White House, the Treasury Building, the Capitol, the Washington

Monument, the Jefferson Memorial, the World War II Memorial, and the Lincoln Memorial Because of this, choice (C) is correct The

passage does not actually say how long it takes to walk through the National Mall It only suggests the narrator started walking it in daylight and ended it at nighttime However, he or she could’ve started an hour before sunset or twelve hours before sunset for all

the reader knows This means choice (A) is not correct, as its question is not answered The passage never talks about who designed the National Mall This means choice (B) is not correct, as its question is never answered The passage lists several

monuments the National Mall contains But it never suggests that it lists ALL of the monuments on the Mall Instead, it only

describes some of the things one can see on a visit to the Mall Because of this, choice (D) is not correct, as its question is not

answered